Portrait about Facing History And Ourselves
by
What is Facing
History and Ourselves?
Facing History and Ourselves is an American based not-for-profit educational and teacher training organization that provides middle and high school educators with tools for teaching history and ethics, and for helping their students learn to combat prejudice with compassion, indifference with participation, myth and misinformation with knowledge. Facing History offers an interdisciplinary approach to citizenship education that connects the history of the Holocaust and other examples of genocide to the moral questions young people face in their own lives. The program engages students in an education that encourages the skills, promotes the values, and fosters the ideals needed to sustain a democratic society.
To study and teach Facing History is to experience meaningful professional and adult development. Rather than give teachers a ready made curriculum, Facing History provides a framework and many varied resources, drawing from history, the arts, economics, literature and science. Teachers then create a course appropriate to the curricula, the philosophy of their own schools and to the dynamics of their classroom.
The journey which is encompassed by a Facing History course begins by examining issues of personal identity and the complexity of ways that society affects the individual. This examination raises important issues of stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination as they have occurred in history, and students are encouraged to think about connections to their present worlds. They are then introduced to an in depth case study, examining the nature of a fledgling democracy - the Weimar Republic- the reasons leading to it’s downfall and the rise of the National Socialism. In the case study, students study the steps leading to the collapse of democracy and the choices open to individuals. They consider the consequences of choices made and not made. They analyze concepts of judgment in history and ways in which that history is memorialized and becomes legacy. In the concluding sections of the program, students investigate individuals who made a difference in their societies and explore the ways in which participation can make a difference.
Although the principle case study focuses on German history, Facing History teachers use its pedagogic framework to examine other related historical situations in their courses –the Armenian genocide, the genocide in Rwanda, apartheid in South Africa, or other issues like the American civil rights movement.
Teachers and students
examine how the study of memory and legacy of previous conflicts could be
related to the question of prevention. This study goes along with the
development of materials about the changes of the international standards of
law, human rights questions and institution building. The most recently
developed resources deal in particular with the question of genocide prevention
and include readings of the ongoing genocide in Sudan and address the work of peace
builders. Facing History has also prepared readings and lessons plans in the
aftermath of the September 11 attacks that explore connections between region
and identity.
Founded in 1976, Facing History has regional centers in Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Los Angeles, Memphis, New York, San Francisco, and representatives in Europe, with more than 20,000 educators in its network. With more than 100 staff members, and with Internet-based resources reaching globally, Facing History engages over 1.5 million students annually.
How does Facing History support
educators?
Many educators begin their Facing History journey at week-long institutes that explore the program’s content and methodology, challenge their thinking, invigorate their teaching, and spark new ideas about how to approach history and ethics with their students. Institutes are conducted in America, Europe and in Africa. Online seminars and forums have been developed to enable teachers to take introductory workshops via e-learning. To further engage scholars and educators around the world, and as part of its own ongoing research and development, Facing History also offers international online forums on such themes as: crimes against humanity and civilization: he genocide of the Armenians; engaging the future: religion, human rights, and conflict resolution; and educating for a civil society after collective violence.
Educators in the Facing History network receive follow-up support through individual consultation, the opportunity to participate in workshops and community events, and access to Facing History’s online resources. Its website (http://www.facinghistory.org/), offers a variety of information, including readings, curriculum outlines, lesson plans, downloadable books and study guides, and online modules. An online campus expands delivery of the core program and extends follow-up services for educators through the Web. The campus allows educators around the globe to access lesson plans and teaching strategies, and share ideas with Facing History staff and colleagues. Educators can also borrow books, videos, articles, and other materials from Facing History’s extensive resource library, or arrange to bring students together with survivors and witnesses of genocide, rescuers, community activists, artists, and scholars.
Evaluation of Facing
History has been a priority of the program since its inception. Researchers
have studied of the impact of the program in such areas as adolescent
psychosocial and moral development and education, violence and violence
prevention, historical understanding, citizenship education, empathy,
self-concept and social interest, academic achievement, teacher professional
development and school climate. In one major study funded by the Carnegie
Corporation of New York, Facing History classes were shown to be significantly
successful in expanding adolescents' capacities for interpersonal
understanding, and in enhancing the ability to reflect upon the personal
meaning of issues of social justice.
International work of Facing History
Facing History is currently developing and implementing programs for teachers and students to nearly 90 countries around the world, including Rwanda, South Africa, the Czech Republic, Columbia and the United Kingdom. In the Czech Republic Facing History has established a partnership with one of the country’s key teacher networks, which is developing materials in Czech. In South Africa Facing History supported the founding of an organization that is using some of the materials and also developing new materials for the country. With other partners Facing History has been invited by the Rwandan Ministry of Education to support the development of a new history curriculum after the genocide. In Northern Ireland Facing History works with several organizations, providing teacher training and curriculum support in the field of history and citizenship education.
Facing History also has a contact person in Germany and is exploring how the materials could be used in German classrooms. As the materials are in English this pilot project will be done in cooperation with bilingual schools.
To learn more about the Organization and the program, please visit at: http://www.facinghistory.org/. The email of Arne Lietz, the contact person in Germany is: arne@facing.org.